Research in Motion may be losing one very important customer. Having been a certified member of the addict group known as Crackberry Anonymous for several years, United States of America president elect, Barack Obama, is set to part with his beloved Blackberry as soon as he officially takes office.
According to the New York Times, the reasons are ‘security concerns and vulnerability to public review’. Presidential electronic correspondence is subject to public review under law, and while Obama could set a precedent by being the first president to preside over his own email, the likelihood is that his aides will take over.
That means that all of those, memos and news roundups that were routinely sent to his BlackBerry throughout the campaign will become a thing of the past for the new president.
Ahh well, never mind RIM, it was the king of ringing endorsements while it lasted. Look on the bright side, at least he isn’t switching his Blackberry for an iPhone.
(Via MocoNews)
RIM’s first touchscreen handset, the Blackberry Storm, is gearing up to rain on the iPhone 3G’s parade (see what we did there? Surely we can’t be the first?). The launch-pad for RIM’s attack in the UK will be Phones4U which has secured the exclusive rights to sell the device.
There’s still no word on the Phones4U website as to the pricing, but given that almost every scrap of info about the device released so far has focussed on how the Storm is being positioned as a direct competitor to the iPhone, we are willing to bet that the available contracts will at least be similar to those offered by O2 for the iPhone.
The actual carrier is pencilled in as Vodafone, which missed out on snaring the iPhone in the UK despite managing to do so almost everywhere else in Europe. With Christmas just around the corner (yep, we went there) and T-Mobile also set to unleash the G1, the ensuing touchscreen battle royale should be interesting.
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Got a Blackberry? Fancy saving some cash on your bill? Heard of Truphone? If your answers to those questions were yes, yes, no, then listen up. In fact, even if you answered yes, yes, yes, you should probably still pay attention.
One of mobile VoIP’s biggest names, Truphone, has just made its client available to Blackberry users. But what is Truphone? Well its a clever little application that when prompted to do so, re routes your calls via Truphone’s own servers to make calls over the internet for a fraction of the usual price.
That means none of your data allowance is used up as the call is essentially being made for you by a third party. That means you don’t really need to worry about having an unlimited data agreement with your carrier like you do with other mobile VoIP applications, though it’s probably worthwhile checking to make sure your carrier doesn’t mind you sidestepping around its bothersome call fees too.
The app is still in Beta mode, but it’s free to download and try out now.
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When the original iPhone launched, the thought that it might be a threat to RIM’s business conquering Blackberry handset was the stuff of fairy tales. One year and one business friendly hardware refresh later, and it looks like Apple’s mobile might be set to give the Blackberry a run for its money.
Apple’s recently announced quarterly iPhone sales surpassed those of Research in Motion‘s handsets by nearly 1.5 million units, with nearly 6.9 million iPhones against 5.4 million BlackBerrys.
The figures shouldn’t be seen however as evidence that the Blackberry isn’t doing well. RIM managed peak sales this year after doubling its sales year on year and the Blackberry, in its various guises, is as popular as ever. The fact that the iPhone has effectively surpassed RIM’s sales in the course of a single year is more indicative of the iPhone’s phenomenal popularity than anything else.
The fact that Apple is now the third largest mobile phone maker by revenue however, after Nokia and Samsung, must have some board members at the likes of Sony Ericsson and Motorola eyeing the ejector seat button with longing.
(Via AppleInsider)
Research In Motion has taken the wrappers of its long-awaited BlackBerry Storm touchscreen handset, and revealed that it’ll only be available on Vodafone and Verizon Wireless when it goes on sale later this Autumn.
They’re flagging it as having “the world’s first clickable touch-screen”, claiming that the on-screen keyboard responds more like a physical keyboard, thanks to the screen depressing slightly when you touch it. That’s clearly an attempt to head off any criticisms of the lack of a physical keyboard in the phone from BlackBerry fans.
Multi-touch, taps, drags and other touchscreen gestures are also supported, while there’s also an accelerometer inside, allowing iPhone-esque switching between portrait and landscape mode. Oh, and it DOES support cut’n'paste, unlike Apple’s handset.
Other stuff: It’s 3G/HSDPA here in Europe, has a full web browser, the obligatory push email, a 3.2-megapixel camera, GPS, 1GB of memory plus a microSD card slot, a 3.5mm headphone port (but also support for Bluetooth audio), and a 480×360-resolution screen. Phew. Vodafone has confirmed it’ll go on sale next month here in the UK, with pricing to be announced.
File this one under, ‘oh really?’. We all know that American election politics tend to get a little circus like towards the end, but this is stretching the definition of the word ‘inventor’ to breaking point.
Apparently McCain, who has been forthright about his inability to send emails, is responsible for the creation of the Blackberry, a device which specializes in push email. At least, that’s the story according to John McCain advisor, Douglas Holtz-Eakin.
When asked what experience John McCain gained as Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee that will help him understand the financial markets, Holtz-Eakin pointed to his Blackberry and said boldly “He did this,”.
Continue reading ‘John McCain: war veteran, presidential candidate and, erm, inventor of the Blackberry…?’
J
ust in case you needed a new reason to be paranoid, a security company has invented a device that can slurp all the data - photos, contacts and SMS - straight off your phone
The Paraben Cellular Seizure Investigation Stick (I’m sure the acronym is pure coincidence) is marketed as a ‘law enforcement’ tool, but is available to the public. By plugging it into a phone, you can grab all the data in just a few minutes - leaving no trace that anything has been tampered with.
The stick supports around 300 Motorola and Samsung phones at the moment, but support for more models - including those from Nokia and RIM - is promised soon.
To be at risk, you would have to hand over your phone or leave it unattended so there are certainly ways of minimizing your exposure. Perhaps investing in some encryption would be a good idea too?
I can see these being snapped up by tabloid hacks - particularly those attending events (e.g. film premieres) that require you to turn in your cameraphone at the door..
The long wait is nearly over, those of you who have bypassed the whole iPhone hooha and decided to wait for the Blackberry Bold instead are going to have your patience rewarded very soon.
Orange will be the first provider in the UK to offer the handset and will be doing so as of the 16th of this month. Yes you read that correctly. That’s well ahead of T-Mobile’s planned release window of September.
The confirmation was made by Orange spokesperson, Rob Kerr, who told the Inquirer that Orange will be taking stock on the 14th and will have them in its shops by the Saturday 16th, along with online ordering.
According to the Inquirer, the handset will be free on a £45 per month contract, which if it’s anything like any of Orange’s other contracts in that price range, should include unlimited data usage. Apparently The Carphone Warehouse will be offering £40 per month contracts for the Blackberry Bold when it starts selling it, so those who can bear to wait a bit longer to save a few quid ought to weigh their options.
That is all, you may recommence waiting…
Aww, that’s nice. Here we were thinking that the iPhone was stomping all over its rivals with (immaculately fitted, designer) hobnail boots. The truth, according to Nokia and RIM is quite the reverse.
Speaking to Macworld, Apple’s two main rivals in the Smartphone market are both relatively sanguine about the iPhone’s success and say that the phone’s high profile is actually boosting sales of rival smartphones too.
There could be something in this - I know a few people who have had their interest piqued by the iPhone, only to discover that they can’t keep their existing network contract or realise that they wont be able to install random apps and plump for a N95 instead.
Saucer of milk, too, for Nokia’s Industry Liaison bod, Mark Selby. When asked if Nokia’s new phone would be an iPhone Killer he replied “I don’t know what there is to kill.” Nokia can, he claimed, sell more phones in seven days than Apple can in a year.
It seems that RIM really has something of a macho complex just now. Just yesterday we heard about the Blackberry Bold and today news of the touchscreen only Blackberry Thunder has surfaced. Expect to hear about the Blackberry Brave and the Blackberry Red Red Meat in due course.
In any case, The Boy Genious Report is claiming the scoop on the device with a bunch of details and is reporting that it will be a full touchscreen effort launching in late summer this year. Interestingly, the Thunder will launch as a worldwide lifetime exclusive on Verizon and Vodafone as opposed to being shipped out to any carrier who wants it.
As for the form factor, besides the touchscreen the Thunder is said to have only 4 physical keys; the send / end phone keys, the BlackBerry menu key, and the back key. The Thunder is also mooted to include GSM HSPA for traveling internationally as well as potentially some 4G guts (probably LTE), though whether the network support for that will be ready in time for its release is another matter.
And that’s about it for now, obviously this is all subject to change until we get our hands on a press release but for any crackberry addicts who have been feeling jealous of the iPhone’s elegant interface, this could be the handset highlight of the year. More on this as soon as we have it.
